Addie McCurdy Awarded the Sheryl R. Young Memorial Fellowship
CongratulationsÌýto Addie McCurdy for being awarded the Sheryl R. Young Memorial Fellowship for the 2024-2025
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In celebration of Addie's achievement, she agreed to answer some questions.Ìý
Can you tell us something about your ongoing research interests in applied mathematics?
Broadly I am interested in distributed control and estimation for systems governed by partial differential equations. I am currently working on leveraging spatial properties of system dynamics to design estimation and control policies that minimize communication costs.
What does receiving the Young Award mean to you, and how does your research connect to Dr. Young’s legacy?
I am extremely honored to be chosen for this award! Dr. Young has been described as a driven problem solver with many interests who supported women in STEM and it is a privilege to be recognized in her memory. My research connects to her legacy in that it isÌýstrongly interdisciplinary andÌýapplicable to a wide variety of problems. I relate to her advocacy for women in science as the current president of CU’s chapter for the Association for Women in Mathematics (AWM).
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How will this award support your research, and what impact do you hope your work will have in the field?
This award allows me freedom to spend more time focusing on my research and outreach goals.ÌýAs technology develops to allow for more refined sensing and actuating, computational and communication costs increase. I hope that my research in developing efficient control and estimation methods will help increase feasibility of using a larger number of sensors and actuators. I also hope that my work with AWM will continue to cultivateÌýan encouraging and inclusive environment for underrepresented groups in STEM.
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What inspired you to pursue this line of research?
I enjoy working in control theory because it is a field with interesting and challenging mathematical problems that have immediate applications, for example in power systems and soft robotics. It is exciting to work with engineers and develop theory to solve current problems. Ìý
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What advice would you give to other PhD students applying for fellowships like this?
It is important to be connected and be involved! The more relationships you have within your department will only increase your chances for opportunities like this one.Ìý